TORONTO, March 14, 2002 -- The world’s foremost scholars on modern Greece will gather at York University March 22-23 in a symposium celebrating the establishment at York of Toronto’s first permanent Chair and program in modern Hellenic studies.
Modern Greece in an International Context: A Symposium, traces the modern history of the descendants of Europe’s classical forebears, including the Greek diaspora, at a time of great change on the European continent. Guests include: Consul-General of Greece in Toronto, the Hon. Alexis Alexandris; Canada’s ambassador to Greece, David Hutton; Oxford University historian Richard Clogg; University of the Aegean historian and senior advisor to the Greek foreign minister, Panagiotis Tsakonas; and University of Florida historian and author of the non-fiction bestseller Modern Greece, Thomas Gallant.
"We are honoured that the Toronto Greek community has chosen York as the site of this Chair, and proud to assemble such a distinguished group of historians on this occasion," said Marlene Shore, chair of York’s history department.
The Hellenic Heritage Chair in Modern Greece will be fully endowed this year at $2 million by the Hellenic Heritage Foundation of Toronto, with a $500,000 contribution from York. The new program will enable students, including more than 1,000 students of Greek heritage enrolling each year at York, to study Greek history, language and culture. "The establishment of this Chair has long been a dream of the Greek community and we feel a great sense of pride and accomplishment to have turned that dream into reality," said John Dagonas, chair of the Hellenic Heritage Foundation. "We hope it serves as an inspiration to the next generation."
As the eminent historian Richard Clogg has noted in his Concise History of Greece, in1830 Greece became the first Eastern European country to win full independence, and in 1981 became the first to achieve membership in the European Community, although during much of her years as an independent state there have been more Greeks outside the borders of Greece than inside. As Thomas Gallant notes, Greece has always been a complex amalgam of peoples and influences, given its geographical location at the crossroads of Asia, Africa and Europe. But the Greek world has long meant more than just the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula. "The experience of the diaspora has been and continues to be a crucial element in the development of Greece and Greek society," says Gallant.
The symposium is open to the public and will begin on Friday, March 22 at 11 a.m. in the Assembly Hall, room 152, Founders College, York University, Keele campus, 4700 Keele St. A complete program is available on the history department website under "conferences": www.yorku.ca/uhistory.
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For further information, please contact:
| Marlene Shore | Adrian Shubert | Susan Bigelow |
| Chair, Dept. of History | Assoc. VP International | Media Relations |
| York University | York University | York University |
| 416-736-5123 | 416-736-5695 | 416-736-2100, ext. 22091 |
| mshore@yorku.ca | ashubert@yorku.ca | sbigelow@yorku.ca |
YU/030/02
